This grant seeks to gain matching funds for alteration and renovation work for animal rooms at Virginia Commonwealth University. These rooms house the majority of animals used for health related research at the University. The most recent American Association for the Accreditation of Laboratory Animal Care (AAALAC) inspection of the facility (November 11, 12, 1991) cited several deficiencies in these rooms which this grant application seeks to rectify. Specifically: . Ceilings in the animal rooms are not solid or pipes and ducts cross the rooms below the ceiling, thereby allowing insects to enter the rooms. Dropped solid ceilings will be installed below all pipe and duct entrances. . Some ceilings and/or light fixtures are not waterproof and therefore cannot be cleaned thoroughly. Solid ceilings will be painted with epoxy or waterproof enamel paint and waterproof light fixtures installed. . Exhaust ducts are at the same level as the output ducts in most rooms leading to stratification of the air flow and inadequate effective air changes per hour. Despite achieving the recommended number of air changes per hour, noxious gases build up in the rooms. The exhaust ducts will be dropped to a height of 1 foot from the floor and the output ducts will be repositioned in the room to optimize air flow. . The main non-human primate facility is very dark and thus needs painting and lighting changes to bring it up to acceptable standards. Doors also have to be added to separate the cage areas from the study areas to remain in compliance with the Guide for the Care and Use of Laboratory Animals (Guide) recommendations. A solid dropped ceiling will be installed with exhaust vents positioned one foot above the floor to improve sanitation and ventilation. The quality of research at the University is being strained by these deficiencies. The vermin infestation problem is intractable to standard approaches as the animal rooms are spread throughout several mixed use buildings. Comprehensive eradication programs are thus not possible. The age of the buildings and their location in a high density urban environment exacerbates the problem. The University is faced with the problem of balancing jeopardizing experimental results through high application rates of insecticides or risking exposing the animals to vermin borne disease. Sealing the rooms against vermin infestation is the only alternative. Solid, waterproof ceilings will also solve the problem of not being able to sanitize the rooms well. Repositioning the exhaust and output ducts will lessen the build-up of noxious gases in the rooms. The current placement is not providing adequate effective room air changes and can cause respiratory problems or distress in the research animals.